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The Value of Martin Prado, and How Flexibility Increases that Value

On May 9, 2014 By

As Jeff Wiser showed us yesterday, Martin Prado is among the D-backs position players who have not performed as well as expected so far this season. Jeff pointed out that Prado has started slow before, and so there may be no reason to sound the alarm. He’s certainly more valuable a player than he’s seemed so far in 2014 …

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Expanding the Zone with Runners in Scoring Position: Is Goldy an RBI Man?

On May 2, 2014 By

Are some hitters particularly well-suited for RBI-likely spots in the lineup not just because of hitting prowess overall or tendency to hit for power, but also because they find ways to get guys in? The saber community has pretty much dispensed with the idea of “clutch” being a skill (which is not to say that some players have not been …

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The Curious Case of Miguel Montero

On April 30, 2014 By

To say Miguel Montero hit a bump in the road last season would be a massive understatement. I’ve personally never witnessed a player scuffle so badly and so obviously for such an extended period of time. It was tough to watch and one couldn’t help but feel for the heart and soul of the D’backs as he tried to fight …

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Miguel Montero an Excellent Pitch Framer, New Statistics Show

On April 25, 2014 By

Despite two decent starts at the end of the Cubs series, the D-backs rotation is still struggling: last in ERA (5.39) and 26th in FIP (4.27). But don’t lay the blame at the feet of Miguel Montero: new statistics show that he’s been much better than the average catcher at getting pitches called as strikes. A study published by …

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How is Chris Owings Doing Anyway?

On April 24, 2014 By

So, while we debated what to do at shortstop all winter and everyone had their say, the Diamondbacks chose Chris Owings as the man in the end. With the losses, poor pitching and occasional #TRUMBOMB, it seems as if we haven’t really discussed how the rookie shortstop has adjusted to full time big league life. The short answer: fairly well.…

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Towers and Cahill Decline in Unison

On April 15, 2014 By

Trevor Cahill was relegated to the bullpen yesterday, with Michael Bolsinger set to take his spot in the rotation. His last start was the tipping point in what has been a gradual decline since he first arrived in Arizona. There is no doubt that he has been bad in his four starts, but he’s been the victim of bad luck …

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Baseball’s Best Hitter, For Now

On April 9, 2014 By

Kevin Towers couldn’t have imagined that Mark Trumbo would start his D-backs days like this. The hottest hitter in the game has done a lot of swinging and not a lot of missing thus far. His five home runs are tops in baseball and through just nine games he’s already amassed 0.6 WAR, accounting for essentially 25% of his pre-season …

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J.J. Putz and Declining Fastball Velocity

On April 8, 2014 By

So far, the Diamondbacks have only brought J.J. Putz into games they have been losing. This seems strange for a man with 189 saves, but the problem is that, in his age-37 season, his velocity has declined. The worries started last April, when he blew four saves. Then he got hurt and missed almost two months. When Putz returned from …

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Roundup: Anatomy of Mark Trumbo’s Home Runs

On April 7, 2014 By

Every baseball fan’s guide to the galaxy: don’t panic based on one week’s worth of games. Despite being in the wake of two losses Down Under, the 2-5 week has no greater an impact on the season in early April than it would in the middle of June. That said, where the D-backs now sit is the opposite of the …

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Gerardo Parra Breaking the Mold in Right Field

On April 3, 2014 By

Gerardo Parra is doing something we haven’t quite seen before: play elite right field while trailing league-average offense for that position. That’s a big reason why it took Parra until his fifth full season to finally cross the 500 PA threshold. But when he did, with 663 PA in 2013, the results were devastating: 4.5 Wins Above Replacement, good for …

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Brandon McCarthy’s New Repertoire

On April 1, 2014 By

Last night Brandon McCarthy started the home opener for the Diamondbacks. He pitched six and two-thirds innings, giving up six hits and five earned runs. Not the result he hoped for, but there were interesting changes I want to note. One start is too small of a sample size to draw any statistical conclusions, but we can see a change …

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Speaking of Defense In Left Field…

On March 27, 2014 By

You’ve heard it all winter long: the Diamondbacks thrive on good defense. Gerardo Parra was simply incredible in right field last year en route to his second Gold Glove. Paul Goldschmidt, never one to be left out, earned one of his own at first base. A.J. Pollock was stellar in center, Gregorius was solid at short, Prado was just fine …

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Wade Miley, Strikeout Pitcher

On March 26, 2014 By

Losing the opening game of the 2014 season in front of a international audience wasn’t what any of us wanted. The Dodgers winning the opening game of the 2014 season is a close second. I’m just going to say it now so I don’t have to later: I can’t stand those guys. Moving on, perhaps the thing that we should …

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Solved: the Mystery at Shortstop

On March 19, 2014 By

There haven’t been a lot of position battles for the Diamondbacks this spring. Even after Patrick Corbin went down, there still didn’t seem to be a vacuum left over. After all, the team has plenty of rotation depth. We can ask how much Cody Ross plays in the outfield but it looks like we already know the answer: sparingly. …

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Archie Bradley Slated to Pitch Exhibition Game in Australia

On March 11, 2014 By

Archie Bradley has been slated to start the Diamondbacks’ exhibition game in Australia. Considering the Diamondbacks are trying to make an organizational impact in Australia, taking Bradley is a great idea. His pitching is impressive, and he is a physical specimen. This is also a good opportunity for Bradley to get comfortable with the team in case of a call-up …

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